Kitchen Queries

Welcome to Kitchen Queries, where the nigella.com team will answer your cooking or food related questions. We’d love you to submit some of your recipe problems, dilemmas or queries for us to get our teeth into!

Please note, we are only able to answer questions selected for publication and aren't able to enter into personal correspondence.

Latest Queries

Non-alcoholic Grasshopper pie

I would like to make the grasshopper pie but have some family members who are allergic to alcohol. What could I substitute for the creme de menthe and creme de cacao blanc?

Posted by Fleet_Girl. Answered on 5th Dec 2010 at 12.00

From the nigella team:

For a non-alcoholic version of Grasshopper Pie simply replace the creme de cacao and creme de menthe with 1/2 teaspoon (ie 2.5 mls)of peppermint extract (and note that you don't need to make up the lost liquid volume with anything else). The flavour is not quite as rounded as the alcoholic version but it is suitably minty and complements with the chocolate crust.

However, do try to use a good-quality natural peppermint extract rather than an artificial one. Also as you don't get any green colouring from the creme de menthe you will need to add at least a little green food colouring to the marshmallow mixture, otherwise it will be white.